The Canes wrap up
their regular season this week with a pair of home games against Georgia Tech
(3/6) and Clemson (3/9). With five seniors on the roster, HurricaneSports.com
is honoring a different one each day this week leading up to Senior Day on
Saturday against Clemson. Today we chat with senior swingman Trey McKinney Jones

Trey McKinney JonesMilwaukee, Wisconsin
9.1 ppg, .373 3-pt%, 3.5
rpg

What is your favorite
memory or moment as a Hurricane?

"My favorite memory is beating Duke earlier this year. I think we were ranked No. 25 and they
were No. 1. Beating the No. 1 team, and it being Duke, in our own conference,
at home, and seeing everyone rushing the court, that was my best memory thus
far. Hopefully I have some bigger
ones later."

What do you think of
how your career has turned out?

"I am glad I made the decision to come here. Being at UMKC was hard for me. Then
when Coach Haith left, the coach that recruited me, I was kind of unsure
because I did not play the previous year. Coach L had no film on me and I don't
think he knew who I was, so I was kind of worried at first, but it turned out
for the best. I could not imagine
a better person for the position and I am grateful. I think it was good for me, it made me work that much harder
to prove myself on the court to show him that I deserve to play and get good
minutes and be a part of this program."

Are you happy with
your legacy at Miami?

"I am, but it is not done yet. Hopefully we can finish off the season with a victory so
that is my ultimate goal."

Could you have ever
imagined being in a position where you were a legitimate contender for a
national championship?

"Honestly, just because of where I came from being that it
was mid major school, it never crossed my mind. For it to be a real possibility, this is kind of a surreal
experience and it means a lot."

What do you think of
the future for Miami Basketball?

"I think Coach L is going to keep moving up. He is a great
coach and with the way we have played this year, this summer he will get a lot
more recruits. Tonye and Shane are his only two recruits. Everyone else was here before so when
he gets his own kind of players and gets to coach them, he will continue to
rise."

What do you hope to
do in your future?

"Obviously I want to play basketball at the next level. What
level that is, I am not sure yet. Right now, I am trying to concentrate on
getting the national championship and winning the ACC."

Was playing pro ball
always a realistic goal for you or has that developed recently?

"It was always a goal of mine. I know I have a good chance of playing professionally at
some level, whether it is overseas or the NBA. Especially now with guys who play well from mid major
schools, if they play well, they get drafted or at least get a chance to play
in the summer league or things like that.
I was not going to be content with just playing college ball and then
sitting down and working a nine to five."

What do you think of
the emergence of the basketball program? Does this feel more like a basketball
school now that it did when you got here?

"I think it is good for us. Now we are being looked at as a
well-rounded school and not just a football school, but a basketball school
too. "

What was it like to
see LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and James Jones sitting courtside at the North
Carolina game?

"It was great.
It means a lot to me that they came and I know my teammates mentioned it
a lot after the game. We look up
to them, and for them to come and show support was big."

What is something
that few people know about this team?

"Last year, we had to a run a mile in order to practice
before the season started. The
guards had to make it in 5:45 and the bigs had to make it in six minutes. Just getting up at 5 a.m. to be on the
track at 6 a.m., everyone was tired and did not want to be there, but I think
that is the hard work we had to put in to be where we are now."

Was that an
experience that helped bring the team closer together?

"I think it definitely is. Conditioning is never fun. It brings out the worst in
people. There would be times where
certain people would not make the time, but some us would get out there and run
it with them and it just brought us closer together."

What is your
relationship like with the coaches and the rest of the team?

"Everyone says this but I can honestly say we are like
brothers, like family. I have had
good experiences at both schools, even at UMKC, but for me to come here and
feel that same kind of brotherhood and bonding between the players was important."

What is the highlight
of your career?

"The Michigan State game earlier this year when I hit five
threes. To just help my team win the first big game of the season over a ranked
opponent and see the fans rush the court, that was special. I think that was my
biggest game."

What did the win over
Michigan State do for the team?

"I think it gave us a lot of confidence as a team. We knew
after that game that we had something special and we can do some special things
this year. It put the past behind
us. We had lost that exhibition game to St. Leo and the first game to Florida
Gulf Coast. We knew people were doubting us. I feel like after that Michigan
State game we were back on our feet and we knew we were going to have a special
season."

What has it been like
to help take this program all the way to No. 2 in the rankings?

"It has been crazy because I was a part of it the whole
time. We have improved so much as a team and as program as a whole, it has done
a lot for us."

What do you think of
the opportunities you've had at Miami?

"I think it has been rare. Coach L gives everyone the same
opportunity. You have individual workouts before the season and everyone is
improving before the season. He is very fair. Going back to when he first got the job, I met with him and
told him I was maybe concerned there was no film on me and I would not get a
fair shot due to the players who played last year. I thought he might continue
with that lineup, but the first thing made sure to tell me was that nobody had
a spot and that he was going to give everyone a fair chance."

What was your
recruitment like and how did you decide to attend Miami?

"I did not really play AAU and that is big in recruiting, so
I was not highly recruited. I knew l was better than mid major, not that
anything is wrong with people playing at mid majors. I just wanted to play at a
major conference school. My last
two schools were Wisconsin and here and it was tough for me to turn down
Wisconsin because that is where I am from and Madison is like an hour and 15
minutes from where I live. It would have been a perfect situation, I thought.
But I prayed about it and I felt like playing in the ACC was the best thing for
me. It is the conference most NBA players come from and it is more of a high-speed
conference, so I felt like it had a lot to do with it. Coach Haith did a great job of selling
the school and I liked him as a coach.
Practicing under him for a year was a good experience for me because
playing at that level is different from playing at UMKC. The players are better so it took me a
year to get used to the changes in talent level. Then he left and having to prove myself again for Coach L
was scary at first, but in the end it was definitely a better situation."

How have you
developed under this coaching staff?

"I feel like I have developed a lot. Coaches like to work out with us after
practice or during individual workouts.
You get one on one attention and you work on the details of your game
that need work and you can improve.
Because of that, each player has improved in the last two years."

Beyond basketball,
what do you think of your time at Miami?

"It has been amazing.
Just being in Miami, it is way different than Kansas City or
Milwaukee. The weather is nice, a
lot better than those two. In
Milwaukee, it was a snow day yesterday and Kansas City they got a lot of snow.
The weather there has been crazy, so not to see snow for the past two or three
years has been nice. My experience
as a whole, I could not ask for a better one. It has been perfect."

What was it like to
see the students camp out and line up before the Duke game?

"It was crazy. I never experienced that and to just see
people do that told us that we were on the map. I even went out there with a
few of my teammates and we went through the line and shook everyone's hands and
took pictures. I felt great seeing
that and I wanted to make sure they knew how important it was to us."

What is something you
know now that you wish you would have known as a freshman?

"Just to trust your coaches. As a freshman, everyone wants to play, but you just have to
trust your coach. They are here for a reason and they are the head coach for a
reason. They know what they are doing so if you have to, take a year or two to
come off the bench or play limited minutes. You just have to be ready to take
advantage of that time and know in the back of your head that you are improving
and your coach wants what is best for the team."

What does being a
Miami Hurricane mean to you?

"It means the world.
It is something that is going to stick with me for the rest of my
life. I am going to come back and
support for every sport, but especially the basketball team. Kind of like when Warren Sapp or other
people come back to support, that is what I am going to continue to do."